A juvenile great blue heron looks for lunch in the Monocacy Creek at Illick's Mill in Bethlehem. A PennEnvironment study released Oct. 26, 2022, found microplastics in samples from 50 Pennsylvania waterways classified either for their good water quality or rated Class A for trout fishing, including the Monocacy. The tiny plastic particles can make their way up the food chain. Steve Novak | For lehighvalleylive.com

Not even Pennsylvania’s cleanest waterways are exempt from plastic pollution.

A study released Wednesday by PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center examined 50 rivers, creeks and streams known for water quality and fishing, including six in and through the Lehigh Valley.

Researchers were looking for microplastics — tiny plastic particles smaller than a grain of rice that can break down from larger pieces and can have far-ranging impacts from wildlife on up through the food chain, including humans.

Microplastics were found at every single site.

“I hope that people can take it as a warning of the direction that our society is headed in,” PennEnvironment Field Director Flora Cardoni said while announcing the report’s findings in a news conference on the banks of the Monocacy Creek in Bethlehem, one of the tested streams. She said it’s a result of a throwaway culture that doesn’t consider where the garbage goes.

“I hope it can be motivation for us to actually pass single-use plastic bans and start moving towards a zero-waste society so that we can stop this plastic from entering our environment and our bodies in the first place,” she said.

MORE: See the microplastics report

PennEnvironment’s latest microplastics report follows one released in early 2021 that found particles present in 53 major lakes, streams and rivers statewide, from Lake Erie to the Delaware River.

The new study focused specifically on clean, local waterways to see how pervasive this form of pollution is. Sample sites were either classified by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection as exceptional value or high-quality streams, or otherwise qualified as Class A coldwater trout fishing streams.

A PennEnvironment study released Oct. 26, 2022, found microplastics in samples from 50 Pennsylvania waterways classified either for their good water quality or rated Class A for trout fishing, including Bethlehem's Monocacy Creek. Steve Novak | For lehighvalleylive.com

Six-quart samples were taken in late 2021 and early 2022 and analyzed at Drexel University in Philadelphia, where researchers looked for different kinds of microplastics — microfibers that come from synthetic fabrics or threads like fishing line; fragments of larger plastic containers; film from plastic bags and food wrappers; and microbeads from cosmetic products.

PennEnvironment says microplastic fibers were found at all sites. Microbeads were only found at one site. But the rest had two or three kinds of plastic pollution.

“It’s clear that the scope of pollution in Pennsylvania extends far beyond what was previously thought,” the report concludes. It did not look at sources, which can vary widely from industrial sites to landfill runoff or simple littering.

In the Lehigh Valley, testing reported microfibers, film and fragments in the Little Lehigh, Bushkill and Monocacy creeks. The Lehigh River was tested in Monroe County where it also had those three kinds of microplastics.

Saucon Creek had microfibers and film, and the Little Bushkill had fibers and fragments.

A plastic jug is stuck in the Monocacy Creek in Bethlehem a short way upstream from where PennEnvironment released a study on Oct. 26, 2022, on microplastics in Pennsylvania waterways. Microplastics can be fragments from larger pieces and can be ingested by wildlife and on up the food chain. Steve Novak | For lehighvalleylive.com

“It’s alarming how plastics have invaded all facets of our lives,” said Michael Harrington, representing the Monocacy Creek Watershed Association at Wednesday’s news conference. “One hopeful note: This report gives several recommendations to reverse this trend.”

PennEnvironment is using the report to urge local bans on single-use plastics like bags, bottles and straws; promote infrastructure improvements to prevent the plastic from reaching waterways; prevent clothing manufacturers from sending overstock garments to landfills; and discourage government assistance to plastic-producing companies.

The Monocacy Creek flows through Bethlehem at Illick's Mill on its way to the Lehigh River. A PennEnvironment study released Oct. 26, 2022, found microplastics in samples from 50 Pennsylvania waterways classified either for their good water quality or rated Class A for trout fishing, including the Monocacy. Steve Novak | For lehighvalleylive.com

MORE: Report decries Lehigh River toxins. Cement plant blames math error for ranking as major polluter.

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Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com.

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